Comments

As for the next iPhone, Gruber believes it will be a completely redesigned model that will arrive in late 2012, like the iPhone 4S. He doesn't expect that the new iPhone will have a larger display, but he does see Apple including an even better camera than is in the iPhone 4S.

I like Gruber. He is right more than wrong. He also will admit when he was wrong, which I predict will be the case regarding the iPhone's current screen size. I don't necessarily see Apple upping the overall footprint of the phone, but it can do things like remove the home button to make room for the larger screen (or relocate it to the sides).

Apple's phone fits nicely in one's hands, but the larger screen phones are extremely attractive especially with men. Apple can have both. Moreover, historically speaking many Apple rumors such as larger screen size take root a year or two before they actually bear fruition. The illuminated key boards is one example. There were rumors reported about that at least a year and half before it came to life. I remember because I waited and each update I was disappointed. Product development takes time. The same was true regarding the Mac Mini. Rumors started appearing at least a year a head of time.

Wait what. Gruber made it very clear in his 2011 post that the notion of a September iPad update was his guess and gut instinct - not something he had inside knowledge about. There’s a big difference between him clearly saying that and confirming what he’s heard from sources inside Apple.

As long as it will slip into my pocket and not break when I sit I am happy. My Brother's Galaxy S broke on his second time of sitting, but the damn thing is way to big and too tight in the pocket. Yes, we are a family divided. LOL

I see that being a real problem for people who keep phones in their front pocket. The iPhone is already tight in my pocket. Increased size would increase the pressure on the phone, potentially cracking the phone in half. This is even more so for a phone that both the front and back is glass.

As for 0.5" - i.e. 4.0" diagonal ... I see it as marginally larger. But, as described here - http://www.ankleskater.com/pagemaker...20110708203600, Apple might do this without increasing the physical width of the phone (i.e. using the previously much-rumored edge-to-edge display). On the other hand, they lose the Retina Display. It seems non-Applesque to introduce an iPad with a display with a higher pixel density and yet decrease the same feature on the iPhone.

I've addressed the width issue and the Retina Display issue in the past.

Wait.. Didn't Gruber said the exact same thing last year? (iPad in March and iPad Pro in Oct).

I think he just realized how silly that sounded. The truth is Apple will only release one major iPhone update and one major iPad update every year.

His speculation was based on iOS 5 being released in September and HP being competitive. As we now know, HP wasn't. Further, his thinking was that it made sense to update the what would than be stale iPad 2 and iPod touch around the same time iOS was slated to be updated, which fell before the Holiday season. That might have turned out to be wrong, but it wasn't silly. It probably would have saved some iPad sales from turning to Kindle Fire sales. Especially if Apple lowered the price of the iPad 2. Gruber also made that prediction in 02/2011. He like just about everybody else probably assumed Apple would release the iPhone 4S around the same time it normally had before (in June). If Apple had done that, Apple undoubtedly would have wanted to go into the holiday season with some just released ultra cool product. That is if it wanted to have a blow out Christmas Quarter (which I have been told is important for the stock price). A several months old iPhone and a refresh of a diminishing product like the iPod wasn't going to help it do that. If the iPhone was released in June, an updated iPad made sense. I would be surprised if Gruber would have kept his prediction once he knew the iPhone wasn't going to be released in June.

Moreover, Apple may have indeed intended what Gruber speculated (I doubt it). It might not have. There, however, were rumors that Sharp was having trouble producing acceptable yield of retina quality displays for the iPad 3 and Apple was stockpiling displays until it had an acceptable amount. If so, Apple could have changed plans. We certainly will never know for sure.

Gruber's comment about the iPad 3 was mostly just poking fun at Digitimes, which Gruber constantly points out seems to just make stuff out. Just about everybody thinks Apple will release an iPad update the same time it generally does.

You don't need any connections or contacts at Apple to guess that the next iPad will arrive about a year after the last one or to predict that the resolution will increase. You could also extrapolate that it will have probably have better cameras, Siri, faster CPU and GPU as well. duh...

As to his last prediction, I would be shocked if the next iPhone doesn't have larger than a 3.5" screen. No, Apple won't make a 4.65" monstrosity, but certainly something in the 3.8" to 4.1" range seems not only plausible but very likely.

The fact at they didn't change the screen size this year should tell you something.

It should tell you that Apple decided what the best size was, and they're NOT changing it just because some "competitors" think they can edge out Apple with a few extra pixels.

I think it's entirely likely that iPhone 8 will have the same 3.5." screen.

If Apple goes with the same size screen, needless to say many people are going to be disappointed. After all 4" is now more like the norm. Hopefully Tim Cook realizes that keeping up with the competition in certain features is a must as well as creating great hardware.

Seems unfathomable to think that the iPhone 5 won't have a larger display. Only budget smart phones now have 3.5" screens. All the mid to high end stuff has 4" or higher.

Having played with a Galaxy Nexus, the 4.6" screen is a perfect size, and doesn't seem unwieldy or overly large. It helps that the phone is super slim of course, and much more comfortably shaped in the hand than the boxy iPhone 4/4S. I wish Apple would just give people a choice of screen size. Choice is good, give us a 4" and a 4.5" option.

You don't need any connections or contacts at Apple to guess that the next iPad will arrive about a year after the last one or to predict that the resolution will increase. You could also extrapolate that it will have probably have better cameras, Siri, faster CPU and GPU as well. duh...

As to his last prediction, I would be shocked if the next iPhone doesn't have larger than a 3.5" screen. No, Apple won't make a 4.65" monstrosity, but certainly something in the 3.8" to 4.1" range seems not only plausible but very likely.

I take it you've never used a Galaxy Nexus. It's 4.6" screen is so much easier on the eyes than the iPhone's tiny screen. And the size, for me at least, and I have average sized hands, is ideal.

You are out of touch. After almost 20 years of ridiculously baggy clothing being in style, we are now back to skinny or fitted-to-the-body clothing.

It's been that way for the last three years at least. Anyone still wearing their jeans at half mast, or baggy chinos with oversized tshirts etc., is completely out of style and has been for a while now.

I take it you've never used a Galaxy Nexus. It's 4.6" screen is so much easier on the eyes than the iPhone's tiny screen. And the size, for me at least, and I have average sized hands, is ideal.

You must use both hands to operate the phone though. It would be awkward otherwise. I have largish hands and there is no way I can reach the top right of the screen with my thumb when holding it in my left hand even on a 4" screen let alone 4.6".

You are out of touch. After almost 20 years of ridiculously baggy clothing being in style, we are now back to skinny or fitted-to-the-body clothing.

It's been that way for the last three years at least. Anyone still wearing their jeans at half mast, or baggy chinos with oversized tshirts etc., is completely out of style and has been for a while now.

Well in younger circles it seems to be a confused mesh of baggy skinny jeans. People around 25+ seem to like fitted jeans.

Urban people are all confused and suburban is a mesh of fitted (been that way for a while) and skinny.